Time After Time
by gabrielsgirl
Summary: My first story for the second season. Renee and Gabriel meet again. Should have more of a summary once I get more written.
1. A New Beginning

"A New Beginning"

  
  


The young woman walked down the street with her arms crossed and her shoulders hunched forward. This posture made her seem shorter than her height of five feet and six inches. Her dark brown, shoulder-length hair was curly and looked as if it was streaked with red coloring. She walked with a weariness that made her seem older, even though she had just turned twenty-one.

Renee Mackenzie had loved in New York City for three years. She was still not comfortable there though. She grew up in a small town. This was a large change from that. However, this was the only place she could go to a school for just writing on a full scholarship. Before she had received the scholarship, she had never even heard of Vorschlag Industries. Of course, she did know who Kenneth Irons was; everyone did. He was the most powerful man in the city. 

Walking into her apartment, she slipped out of her coat and tossed it onto the couch. Her answering machine blinked, telling her she had messages. When she hit the play button, she heard the automated voice say, "You have two new messages."

"Renee, I'm sorry I didn't call a week ago," her father's voice said over the machine. "I know your birthday was last week, and I missed it again. I'll try to call again sometime when you're more likely to be in."

"Empty apologies and promises," she muttered as the message ended.

"Hey, hon. Wish I could have caught you. Anyway, just wanted to remind you that I'm gonna be leaving here in the morning. I should arrive around lunchtime. So, I'll see you then. Love ya."

Renee had to smile even though the message wasn't for her. As she was turning away, the door opened. "Hey, Kota," she greeted her friend and roommate. "Jason called," she told her, nodding at the machine.

"What did he say?"

"Just wanted to remind you that he's leaving in the morning."

"Like I'd forget," she said with a smile. "Oh, yeah. Someone called for you earlier."

"Yeah, my dad," she said bitterly. 

"No, someone else. It was a guy," she said with a twinkle in her eyes. 

"Stop teasing, Kota."

"Hold on. I wrote the name down somewhere."

While she looked for the name, Renee walked into their bedroom and changed into some old jeans and a t-shirt. "Found it," she heard her friend, Dakota, say as she came to stand in the doorway. "Gabriel Bowman. Left his address, too. Gonna get a date, Renee?" She teased. 

Renee just rolled her eyes. "Yeah right. He's the one who runs that website. What's the address?"

She told her the address she'd been given. Then, Renee grabbed her coat and left. She walked the few blocks to the address, saw the name of the website on the door, and knocked. After waiting a minute, she knocked again afraid the first one was too soft. The door swung open, and a young man not much older than her stood there. His brown hair looked liked he hadn't taken a comb to it yet. His soft brown eyes seemed to fit with the smile on his face.

"Are you Gabriel Bowman?" She asked.

"Yep. And who are you?"

"Renee Mackenzie. I contacted you about..."

He interrupted her. "A necklace. Can I see it? Otherwise I don't think I can help."

"Sure."

They walked inside, and she pulled a box out of her pocket. Opening it, he scrutinized the necklace. A rose sat in a horseshoe, and two hearts were connected to the rose. There was an amber stone in the middle of the rose. He nodded his head. "I've heard of it before. Oige rath ghra." When he saw her confused look, he apologized. "Sorry. That's Gaelic. Youth, luck, love. It's been around for over 500 years. From Scotland. The head of clan Kenzie had it made for his wife, Aideen."

"How sweet," she said in a sarcastic voice. 

"You don't sound like a typical hopeless romantic female," he said with a smile.

"I'm not."

"Ok. Anyway, the horseshoe supposedly stands for good luck, the hearts for true love, and the rose for youth. The stone is said to be magical which has caused this amulet to last for so long."

"This is the original?"

"Yep. It's the only one. How'd you get it?"

"My dad gave it to me. Said he had to continue the cycle. Still have no idea what he meant by that."

"Well, the story goes that Aideen gave it to her youngest daughter, Aine, before she married. Aine died before she could pass it on to her youngest daughter though. So her husband gave it to her. Since then, before the youngest daughter leaves home, her father hands it down to her."

"But my dad didn't have any sisters, so it must have been given to him instead. He is the youngest of three boys," she said more to herself than to him.

"So did you want to sell that or just see how much it is worth?" Gabriel asked as he tried to figure how much money he could get out of it either way. Whether he made it now or later didn't matter. 

"Huh?" She had been jerked from her musing by the sound of his voice, and it took her a moment to think about what he had said. "Oh. Neither, really. I just wanted some information on it. Did you want some kind of payment for that?"

"You could let me take you to dinner."

"You're forward."

"Nope. Just being friendly."

"Well, sorry, but I don't even know you."

"You sure about that?" He asked with a teasing grin.

"Something about you seems familiar, but I know I've never met you before. I remember people's faces and names. And sorry, but I'm not gonna go out with a complete stranger." 

The corner of his mouth lifted in a surrendering smile, but disappointment was etched in his face. "Thanks for the info," she said, then turned and left.

Gabriel couldn't help but watch her walk away. There was determination in her gait. She wasn't one to just wander around. when he had looked in her eyes though, he had seen uncertainty. She was beautiful even though she wore no makeup. Her brown eyes were sharp with intelligence. He felt drawn to her by something besides her beauty though.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Renee walked slowly to her apartment. "I can't believe he asked me out to dinner," she muttered to herself. "I can't trust him yet. I don't even know the boy." She stopped when she noticed the looks other pedestrians shot at her. She mentally shook her head. When was she going to learn not to talk to herself when other people could hear? And why was she calling him a boy? He has to be at least the same age as me, she thought to herself.

When she walked through the door, Dakota bombarded her with questions. "What was he like? Cute? Nice? He sounded so nice on the phone. And smart. Was he? Come on, tell me."

Renee laughed at her friend. "Kota, it wasn't a date."

"Please tell me," she begged.

"Fine. Yes, yes, and yes. In no particular order," she said, and they both laughed.

"Your dad called again while you were gone."

"What did he want this time?" She asked as she looked through the cupboards for something to eat.

"To talk to you. Why don't you call him back, Renee?"

"Because," was all that she would say.

"That's not a good answer, Renee. Both of us know you don't hate him."

"I know that. I love him. He just never realized that."

"Maybe he has now. 

"Well, it's a bit late now, don't you think?"

Dakota knew it was pointless to argue with her friend when her mind was set in the stubborn mode. She took two microwave dinners from the freezer and handed one to Renee who had given up on the cupboards. Twenty minutes later they had finished eating and were sitting quietly at the table. A knock at the door startled them. Dakota was closer to the door, so she answered it.

"Come in," she told their guest. When she stepped out of the way, Gabriel Bowman walked into the apartment.

"What are you doing here?" Renee asked, genuinely surprised. 

"You left your necklace at the shop. Just wanted to return it."

"How did you know where I live?"

"Looked you up in the phone book."

"Oh," she replied, blushing with embarrassment. "Of course."

"Would you like to stay for a bit?" Dakota asked him with a mischievous look.

Seeing Renee tense up at the suggestion, he declined. "I have to be leaving. Maybe I'll see the two of you again though."

Once he had left, Renee asked, "What did you do that for?"

"Do what?" She asked innocently.

"You know what."

"Just trying to get you to smile more. Thought maybe he could help."

"Well, will you stop trying to set me up? I'll find my own guy in my own time."

"Fine. Was just trying to help."

The next morning, Renee was sitting at the computer after eating breakfast. Dakota had woken up late and was just starting to eat. She looked up at Renee and asked, "Why don't you go see him? You know you've got it bad. When you're on that computer, you forget what you got on to do. And when you try to write, you completely lose track of your thoughts."

"Who is it I'm supposed to be seeing?"

"Um, how about a young man who has an interest in ancient artifacts and talismans. Lovely brown eyes. Nice. Smart. Ringing any bells?"

She shook her head and lied. "I have no idea who you're talking about."

"Renee, why don't you give it up? You're definitely thinking about him. I can tell you like him."

"He's cute," she admitted. "But I don't even know him."

"Well, how are you supposed to get to know him if you never talk to him?"

Renee just rolled her eyes at Dakota's persistence. Before either of them could say anything else, the phone rang. Glad for the interruption, Renee answered it on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Glad I was finally able to catch you, Renee."

"Hi, Dad."

When she returned the phone to its receiver ten minutes later, Dakota grabbed their coats and handed Renee's to her. "Where are we going?"

Dakota didn't answer her. She just walked out the door and waited for her friend to follow. When she saw where they were going, Renee stopped. "Kota, I don't want to see him."

"Too bad. We're gonna solve your problem now."

After several more minutes of persuasion, Renee finally gave in. "Fine. I'll go see him. But nothing will come of it. I don't like him. I just think he's cute."

Dakota knocked on the door of the shop and waited for it to be answered. When Gabriel opened the door, she told him, "Renee wanted to talk to you." Before either of them could say anything, she added, "I have to get going. Supposed to be picking Jason up in about an hour. Need to get ready. You two have fun." She smiled at them and hurried out of the room before Renee could stop her.

"So what did you want?"

"I didn't want anything. She forced me into coming here."

"So you didn't actually want to see me?"

"Nope." When she saw the pained look he tried to hide, she apologized. "Sorry. I don't have anything against you personally. In fact, you seem rather nice. But still, you're a guy."

"Yeah, last time I checked anyway."

Renee laughed, then said, "You are a bit of a smart ass, aren't you?"

"I do my best."

His phone rang, and he left to answer it. Renee wandered around the shop, picking up and replacing the objects. When he returned, she was looking at a large silver pocket watch.

"That used to belong to Winston Churchill."

She jumped at the sound of his voice and almost dropped the watch. "Really? Wasn't he the Prime Minister of England or something?"

"Yeah, he was."

"Is that just a spin to sell it?"

"Nope, that's the truth."

There was a moment of awkward silence when they realized that they didn't have anything to talk about. Then she asked, "Who called?"

"Just a friend. She's gonna be stopping by."

"Maybe I should be going then."

"Don't worry about it. You'll probably like Sara."

About five minutes later, there was a knock on the door, and Gabriel let his guest in. She was tall with long, dark, brown hair and green eyes. She was slim and looked to be strong, both mentally and physically. "So, who's your friend, Gabriel?" She asked with a smile.

He returned the smile. "Sara, this is Renee Mackenzie," Turning to Renee, he said, "this is Sara Pezzeni. Now that the introductions are over, let's go in and sit."

Renee declined. "I need to be going. Have an assignment due Monday, and I've hardly even started on it."

She said goodbye to both of them and walked outside. As the door closed behind her, she heard Gabriel tell Sara, "Hey, I'm glad you called." Then she was out of hearing range.

All the way home, she berated herself. "What are you doing, Renee? Don't go and fall for another guy. Don't be stupid. You'll just get close to him, then he'll either get tired of you and leave or something will happen to him. That's what always happens when you get close to someone. This time won't be any different." By the time she reached the apartment, Renee had convinced herself that there was no point in starting a relationship with Gabriel Bowman no matter how interested she was in him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"You like her." Sara stated it as a fact, not a question.

"Huh?" His mind hadn't been on their conversation, and now he was confused about what she was saying.

"That girl, Renee. You like her."

He shrugged. "She's not interested. I gathered from the way she talks that she doesn't have much faith in men. Probably not in people in general either. Her friend had to drag her down here to talk to me."

"Well, she seemed nice. Stay near her. She'll come around."

"I hope so."

  
  



	2. Uncertainty

"Uncertainty"

  
  


Renee was sitting at the computer when the door opened. Dakota walked in, followed by her boyfriend, Jason McBride. He towered above the two girls with a smile on his face. His red hair was cut short, but was still long enough to appear messed up.

"Hello, Renee," he greeted her.

"Hey, Jason. Have a nice trip?"

"It was all right. Dakota told me you met a guy." There was an amused light in his eyes.

"That little . . . " The statement ended in a growl. 

Both Dakota and Jason laughed. He put his suitcase beside the couch, then flopped onto it. "We were planning on going to dinner tonight," Dakota told her. "Would you like to come?" 

"I don't want to tag along with the two of you."

"Why don't you see if Gabriel would like to come?"

"I don't even know him! I can't just ask him to dinner."

"Stop using that argument. You said he asked you out after the first time you met."

"Kota, will you please stop trying to push us together."

"I'm sorry."

"No, you're not," Renee replied with a laugh at their old joke.

"Yeah, you're right. Fine, if you won't ask him, I'm all right with it. I'll just do it myself."

"Don't, Dakota."

Dakota knew Renee was serious when she didn't use the shortened form of her name. "Why not?"

"I'm not ready for this. I don't know if I can trust him. And anyway, I have to work on this story."

"I'm not saying you should run out and marry the guy tomorrow. Just see if he's free for dinner tonight. And stop making excuses. The story can wait 'til tomorrow."

"Fine. I'll call him if it'll get you to lay off." She picked up the phone then realized she didn't know what his phone number was. "I can't call him. He never gave me his number."

"That's why there's a phone book, Renee."

She flipped to the "B" section and found his name. After dialing the number, she almost hung up but her friend stopped her. He answered after the third ring, and she said, "Hello."

"Hey."

"Hi."

"Think we've gotten the greetings over with. Now how about an introduction."

She giggled nervously then said, "Sorry. This is Renee."

"Didn't recognize your voice on the phone," he apologized. 

"Don't worry about it. Most people don't."

She wasn't sure how to ask him to dinner, so neither of them spoke for a minute. Finally his voice broke through the silence. "Why did you call?"

"Uh, well, Dakota was wondering if you'd like to go to dinner with us tonight."

Gabriel was shocked. He hadn't thought this chance would come for quite some time. He jumped at it. "Of course. What time?"

Renee looked at Dakota and asked. She looked at her watch and said, "About six o'clock."

Renee repeated this to Gabriel and told him, "We'll pick you up then."

"Great. I'll be ready."

That evening they were seated in a nice, but inexpensive restaurant. After they ordered, Gabriel tried to start a conversation with Renee, but she couldn't keep it going. She was nervous, and whenever that happened, she could hardly say one word.

He was getting frustrated, but wasn't planning on giving up anytime soon. He was determined to break through her wall. Trying to find out what her interests were, he asked, "What are you doing in the city?"

"Going to school."

"Where?"

"Paragon Writing Institute."

"What are you doing there?"

"Hm. Building a car," she said with a touch of sarcasm. 

"Didn't know that's what you did at a writing institute," he said with mock wonder. "Thanks for increasing my knowledge."

She laughed, and he grinned at her. Their dinner arrived, and while they ate, they found out more about each other. As Renee talked, Gabriel began to learn why she acted the way she did toward him. She felt that no one ever stuck around for long. So, she figured if she got close to anyone, she would just end up getting hurt. 

"My parents got divorced when I was young. Only saw my dad every other weekend and for holidays. Then, he decided we didn't have to come down as often. Thought me and my sister would have better things to do. She was happy. I wasn't. Felt like he didn't care anymore."

Gabriel felt sorry for her. When he told her that, she said, "Please don't. I'm not telling you to get your sympathy. In fact, I don't even know why I'm telling you."

When they left the restaurant, Gabriel asked Renee, "Would it be okay if I called you sometime?"

"Sure, if you don't mind talking to a wall."

Dakota laughed. "She's not lying, Gabriel. She doesn't talk much."

They dropped him off at his apartment, then headed back to theirs. Renee sat at the computer and typed her assignment for the class on Monday as the words came into her head.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"How's the arm, Jake?" Sara asked the rookie when he walked into the office.

"Healing," Jake McCartey's arm was still in a sling after being shot during a drug bust with a corrupt cop.

"Yeah, well, Dean is gonna get what he deserves for this."

They looked up when their partner, Danny Woo, walked in. "We have a new case," he told them.

"What is it this time, Wise Asian Master?" Sara joked with him.

"Guess you'll find out at the scene."

Danny and Jake drove to the crime scene in the car while Sara followed on her motorcycle. When they arrived at a church, a coroner approached Sara and filled her in, "Victim's name is Simon Peter. Late twenties, reddish-blonde hair, blue eyes. Old man found him early this morning. Took four bullets to the heart, top, bottom, left, and right sides. First shot probably killed him. The rest were just for show."

Sara lifted the sheet from the dead body. Rigor Mortis had set in before his eyes could be closed. Sea-blue eyes stared up at her with a terrified look in them. She couldn't stand to see that look and put her hand over them. As soon as she did this, she was assaulted by a Witchblade vision. A you man was leaving the church. Three men jumped him in the alley. Two of them held him while the other put four bullets in his heart.

She was pulled from these visions when Jake tapped her shoulder. "Pez, are you all right?"

"Never have been," she replied as she dropped the sheet over the body again.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"I thought we were going to the library," Renee said to Dakota as they walked down the street.

"We are."

"Then why'd we just pass the street it's on?"

"Decided to take a detour."

Renee didn't buy it. "There's no reason to take a detour. This'll just make it take longer to get there. Detour's are supposed to be shortcuts."

"We just have to see something before we go there."

Renee shook her head. She didn't believe her. She knew her friend was up to something, just not what it was. They hadn't walked much father when Renee thought she saw something move in the shadows of an alley. "I think someone's watching us."

Dakota sighed in disgust. "You're being paranoid, Renee. I think after three years you wouldn't still feel that way."

"I mean it. I think I saw someone lurking in that alley."

Dakota started to argue with her, then her mouth clamped shut, and her face went white. Renee spun around and saw what had made her friend freeze. A tall man dressed all in black was walking toward them. His long, black, curly hair hung loose to his shoulders. If he hadn't scared her by just appearing like that, Renee might have thought he was good looking. She started to back away, but Dakota was frozen. He grabbed Dakota's hands in his gloved ones and said, "It has been a long time since I have seen you, Darvi."

She was surprised to hear her older sister's name, though not surprised to be mistaken for her. Everyone seemed to make that mistake.

"I-I'm sorry, sir," she told him, still startled. "You have the wrong person. Darvi is my sister."

"Forgive me my mistake. You resemble her immensely."

To Dakota, it sounded as if he was paying her a compliment. "Thank you."

He turned to leave, but she called out and stopped him. "Excuse me, sir."

He turned his hazel eyes on her and waited for her to continue.

"What's you name?"

"Ian. Ian Nottingham."

She nodded her head. "Darvi told me about you. You work for Kenneth Irons."

"I did." He looked away, then back again. "And you, sweet lady. What is your name?"

"Dakota. If you know my sister, you know3 my ast name."

He smiled at her. "Dakota Rose. As beautiful as your sister." He turned again and had disappeared into the shadows before she could stop him this time.

"Okay. That was weird," Renee said, finally able to speak again. "Who was that?"

"Someone my sister met a few years ago when she was working here," Dakota replied, but she still looked like she was in a dream land. She shook her head and said, "Let's get going."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The old priest's white hair was trimmed neatly around his ears and the base of his skull. He had bright, sharp, blue eyes that showed his intelligence. There was no reason for him to doubt why the three detectives who sat in front of him were there. He decided to play with them anyway. "What can I help you with, detectives?"

Sara could see through his act of ignorance, but decided to sit back and see how this show unfolded. The priest noticed the bracelet on her wrist when she sat in the chair. Danny took a picture out of his pocket and handed it to him. "He studied under you."

"Yes. Simon Peter."

"He was killed last night."

"I hear. It was truly a pity. He was a bright young man. And strong in his convictions."

"So you know who would've wanted to kill him?" Jake asked. 

"No one, detective. Everyone seemed to like young Simon. He was friendly, but like I told you, strong in his convictions."

"Is that why he was killed?" Danny asked, wondering why Sara hadn't spoken since they had showed the priest their badges.

"How am I to know? I'm not the one who killed him. But no one likes to think their beliefs are wrong. Someone may have taken exception to his way of thinking."

"And what was his way of thinking?" Sara finally asked.

'I told you. He was stro-."

"Yeah, yeah. He was 'strong in his convictions.'" She interrupted. "But what were his convictions?"

"He didn't always see things the same way as the Church. Some of his fellow clergymen, even me at times I admit, took objection to this. He, however, didn't give in to us. Any other questions, detectives?"

"No, that's all for now," Danny told him. "If we have any more, we'll get a hold of you."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Why do you keep on tricking me into coming here?" Renee whined when she saw Gabriel's building in front of them.

"Because it's good for you."

Renee scowled at her, but it was only a mask. She actually was excited to see him, but she didn't want her friend to know. If she did, she would never give up until she got the two of them together. She followed her to the door but looked at the floor until Gabriel answered Dakota's knock. 

"We can leave if you're busy," Renee said before he could even greet them.

He smiled at the sight of them. "Come in. I wasn't expecting you. Sara's supposed to be coming over after work, but my day's open until then. Glad for the company."

They walked inside, and Renee once again marveled at this collection of oddities. There were skulls, artifacts from numerous cultures, a sword, and many things she couldn't place. She felt drawn to a velvet-lines box. There was a coil of what appeared to be dark brown horsehair. As she reached over to touch it, Gabriel came up behind her. "Custer's."

"Huh?" she asked unintelligently, not making sense of the one word.

"Well, his horse's actually."

Renee was still giving him a blank stare, but at the mention of a horse, her eyes lit up.

"Those are hairs from the tail of Colonel George Armstrong Custer's horse." 

Renee looked amazed, and they both heard Dakota start to laugh. "Gabriel, you never should have told her that. There's only three things she's fascinated by, at least when it comes to history: Celtic history, the Civil War, and the Old West. Now, I'll never be able to drag her away from here."

Renee just rolled her eyes at her friend. "What else do you have here?"

He spent the next hour showing her around the shop, explaining every piece he owned. Dakota sat at the computer, watching them. She could see her friend was enjoying herself. She stood to leave unnoticed, then remembered something she wanted to ask him. 

"Gabriel?" She ventured. 

He looked up from a skull he was telling a story about. "What?"

"Sorry to interrupt the two of you, but I just wanted to ask you something."

"What is it?' He questioned, walking around a display case.

"I was wondering if you knew someone."

"Lots of them," he replied with a laugh. "Hard to do business otherwise."

"Well, a particular someone. Ian Nottingham. Tall, long black hair, works for Kenneth Irons."

"I know Irons is missing."

"Yeah. I read that in the paper. But what about Nottingham?"

"Don't know him. Sara might though. I think she had some dealings with Irons during a previous case." He didn't tell them everything he knew about Kenneth Irons. "I'll ask her for you later."

"Thanks." Turning to Renee, she said. "I'm gonna go home now. Are you coming with me, or will I see you later?"

Renee glanced at Gabriel, then made up her mind. "I'll see you later."

Dakota smiled, then nodded farewell and left. Gabriel smiled at Renee and asked, "So, what should w do now?"

"Show me everything else here," she told him.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The old, white-haired priest stood in front of a group of hard-bitten and rough edged men. If they only had the hats, boots, and strapped on six-guns, they would look like they had just stepped out of a western. The leader of the five men stood to face the elderly man. "You wanted to see us," he sated.

"Yes, we have a problem as you know. We knew it would be difficult to obtain our goal, but not how much so. The Church had one of its own opposing it, but thanks to you, that problem was handled. Now we face our next hurdle; the wielder herself. We knew she was a cop, just not who. Now we know. Her name is Sara Pezzeni. You will get Digitablum Magae from her. It belongs to the Church, and we will have it.

The five men seemed bored by his speech. They didn't really care about the reason behind the job, as long as they were being paid. 

"We'll get it," the leader told him. The five of them stood and left through the alley door where the young priest, Simon Peter, had been killed.

The priest nodded approvingly at the men, then left through the front door.


	3. Trouble!

"Trouble!"

  
  


The sun was just starting its descent when Gabriel finished showing Renee everything in his shop including the back room; a room no one else ever saw. They were walking to the door, and Renee laughed at something he said. If I'm not careful, she reminded herself, I'm gonna fall again. And hard. A knock on the door brought her suddenly out of her thoughts. 

Gabriel answered it, and the door swung open. Sara stepped quickly inside and shut the door behind her. The worry in her face concerned him. "What's wrong, Sara?"

"Nothing, Gabriel. Don't worry about it."

He looked carefully at her, shaking his head. "Don't pull that with me. What's wrong?"

She looked at him, then sighed. "It's nothing, Gabriel. Just felt like someone was following me."

"Probably Nottingham," Renee muttered. She was still a little shaken after the encounter with him. 

Sara spun around to face her. "Did you say Nottingham?"

"Yeah," Renee replied not sure why she had reacted that way. "Why?"

"How do you know him?"

"Friend of mine's sister knew him. I met him today. He was lurking in an alley, then came out and started talking to her."

"That's no surprise. He's always lurking." She looked at Renee again. "Be careful. He can be dangerous."

"I will be. He seemed a bit...," she couldn't think of the word she wanted.

"Like a freak," Sara finished for her.

"I don't know," Renee replied, shaking her head. "Dakota seemed to trust him, and Darvi knew him."

Gabriel broke in, trying to change the subject. "Why don't you two sit down. Do you want anything to drink?" 

Before they could answer, the door crashed open, and five men stormed into the shop. The red stone in Sara's bracelet began to swirl as if storm clouds were gathering. It transformed into a metal gauntlet, then a blade appeared from the top of it. Renee and Gabriel had their eyes on the intruders and didn't notice the transformation. 

The leader did, however. He ordered the rest of his men to grab her two friends. Before either of them could move, their arms were restrained by two men. The leader then turned to face Sara. "Give it to us," he demanded.

She glanced at Gabriel, and he shook his head. She looked from him to Renee, then back to the leader. Gabriel could see the fight she was having with herself and said loud enough for her, but not the other man to hear, "Sara, go. Get out."

After a second of hesitation, she backed out the door, then ran to her bike. Slamming her helmet on her head, she turned the key and started toward the precinct. 

One of the men holding Gabriel let go with one of his arms, drew a gun from under his coat, and brought it crashing down on the younger man's head. The room swam before his eyes, then his legs went limp, and he collapsed to the floor. Renee tried to struggle with her captors, but stopped when one of them began twisting her arm. She relaxed, and so did the pressure.

"Get them into the car."

"But, Boss," one of the men started to say.

"I said get them into the car. She will come."

Renee was able to walk to the car, but Gabriel was dragged there. Their hands were restrained behind them while they were still in the shop. Both were lifted and dropped into the trunk. The lid was slammed shut, and the two of them were left in darkness. She heard the car start up and felt as it took off. Renee's head hit against the bottom every time they hit a bump, and there was no way to stop it. After several minutes, she had a severe headache.

After a few more miles of this, the car stopped. Renee readied herself for the bright sunlight that would blind her when the trunk opened. It never came. They were left there, their muscles cramping from hour after hour of stillness. Gabriel was still out of it, so Renee laid there in silence. 

She lost track of time when she fell into an uncomfortable sleep. She was awoken by the creak of the trunk being opened. Gabriel shifted himself onto his side; he was finally awake. It was dark outside with only the moon offering scant light. With it, she could make out a man towering over her. He grabbed the front of her shirt. "Get out," he demanded.

"I can't," she retorted. She wasn't being belligerent or sarcastic, just truthful. She couldn't move any part of her body without a sharp pain slicing through it. Laying in one position for several hours gave her muscles time to stiffen up and not want to relax.

With a growl, he pulled her out of the trunk, but her legs refused to cooperate once they touched the ground. She fell on her side, and since she couldn't use her hands to break her fall, her shoulder and the side of her face slammed into the ground. She cried out as pain radiated from her shoulder. Lifting her head, she could feel the gravel imbedded in her cheek.

Gabriel soon joined her on the ground. His face looked extremely pale in the darkness. He started to smile at her, but was jerked to feet. They were pushed then dragged into a building. Once in there, chains were attached to the links of their handcuffs, and they were both chained to a pole in the middle of the room. 

They barely had enough slack in the chains to move from their position against the pole, let alone to lay down. So, for the next hour or so, they sat still in silence. After awhile, Renee began to shift restlessly. "What's wrong?" Gabriel whispered to her. 

She slowly shook her head. "I just can't stand to sit still for long periods of time. Need to move around."

"Well, doesn't look like you'll be able to do that," he replied, keeping his voice low.

They had tried to keep their voices at a whisper so the men wouldn't hear them, but it didn't work. One of them looked up, got to his feet, and strode over to them. He glared down at Gabriel. "Keep your mouth shut," he ordered.

Gabriel just glared back at the man. This enraged him. He kicked Gabriel's hip, causing him to wince in pain, but he didn't make a sound. The man sneered at him, then returned to his buddies.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When all of the light of the day had disappeared, Dakota began to worry about Renee. She should have been back by now. She knew her friend. If she was going to be gone late, she would have called. Renee hated having people worry about her. Also, they had almost a twin-psychic thing going. If something was wrong with one of them, the other could always sense it right away. Dakota had that feeling now. 

She grabbed the phone from its receiver, and punched the buttons of Gabriel's phone number. It rang twice before the answering machine picked up. There was no message, just a beep. She slammed the phone down, grabbed her shoes and coat, and rushed out of the apartment. Dakota had no idea where she was going to go. She stopped and made herself calm down enough to think. "I should go to his shop first and see if something happened there," she thought aloud.

She knew she would be embarrassed if nothing had happened, and they had just been too "busy" to answer the phone. She knew somehow though that something was wrong. When she arrived at the shop, the door stood open. She stepped cautiously through, but nothing seemed to be out of place. Then her gaze was drawn to a small red notebook laying open on the floor. She bent to pick it up and instantly recognized it as the one Renee always carried to write thoughts in as soon as they came to her. 

She slowly lowered herself t the floor and ran her hand through her thick, black, curly hair. She had no idea where to look, but she knew her friend was in a lot of danger. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After an hour, Gabriel got sick of being quiet, and something devilish was riding him. He might be stuck there for a time, but he wasn't going to let his captors enjoy it. "What do you guys want?" He suddenly demanded to know. 

"What do you think we want?" One of the men growled at him. 

Gabriel pretended to think about this question for a second, then shrugged his shoulders with exaggeration. Barely hiding a smirking grin, he said, "I give up."

A moment later the man was squatting beside Gabriel. He had the younger man's hair in his fist and was pulling his head back. "Listen, boy. I can make your life miserable," he hissed at him. 

Gabriel looked out of the corner of his eye at him while gritting his teeth in pain. He couldn't believe how trite the guy sounded. Don't people have any creativity anymore? He questioned himself. Then he retorted, "Like I'm scared."

The man sent his unoccupied fist into Gabriel's stomach. "Like you should be."

Gabriel coughed, then just glared at the man. This enraged him even more. He let go of his hair and used the heel of that hand to smash his captive's nose. Gabriel cried out in pain as blood flowed from his nose and over his lips. With a smug smile, the man hit him again, this time opening a gash on his cheek. Satisfied, he walked over to where the rest of the group was sitting.

"Are you all right?" Renee whispered to him.

He nodded his head, then remembered their backs were to each other, so she couldn't see him. "Yeah. Fine," he replied weakly.

"Why did you do that?" She asked after a long silence. "You had to know it would just make him mad."

"Do you really care?" Something in his voice sounded extremely sad.

"Yes." Her voice was soft, but full of intensity. "I haven't known you long, but I still consider you a friend. Not many people are considered my friend, but the few that are, I never stop caring about."

Gabriel was sorry he had acted that way. Now her words were like a knife. He knew how she felt. His friends meant as much to him. "I'm sorry. It just seemed that you didn't really care. You always act like you don't want to see me."

Her bottom lip started to quiver, but she wasn't going to let their captors see her cry. They would misunderstand the reason behind the tears. "I'm sorry. I just didn't want you to leave."

Gabriel wasn't sure what that had to do with seeing him, but before he could question her, two of the men walked over to him.

"We're getting sick of your mouth," one of them told him.

"How can you even hear me from over there?" He wanted to know.

"It doesn't matter if we can hear you or not. We can see your mouth moving. We've told you enough to keep it shut. Guess it's time to show you."

He rolled his eyes, but had barely opened his mouth to make a sarcastic comment when a fist pushed his lips back into his teeth. He could taste blood in his mouth. A man grabbed his shirt while the other unchained him from the pole. The one who unchained him pulled his arms over his head by the handcuffs, then dragged him across the floor. Gabriel groaned as he felt splinters poke through the fabric of his jeans and stick into his skin. 

Renee saw him as they dragged him onto another room. His face was contorted with pain. "Where are they taking him? What are they doing?" She demanded of the other three men, but they just ignored her. She got one more glance of Gabriel before the door closed between them.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sara didn't go far when she left Gabriel's shop. It wasn't too long after the men left with her friends when she saw a girl around Renee's age hurry to the shop. She decided to follow and see what the girl was up to. When she looked into the shop, she was sitting on the floor with a notebook in her hand.

Sara made her way across the room, but Dakota didn't notice her. She stood there for a moment before speaking. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

Dakota's head jerked up, and she started to slide herself across the floor, away from Sara. "Where's Renee?" She asked, wary of Sara. 

"You her friend?"

"Yeah. Where is she? I got worried when she didn't come home. So I came here and found this." She showed the notebook to Sara. "She wouldn't leave it. She takes it everywhere."

Sara sat down beside her and said quietly, "Don't worry. I'm Gabe's friend."

Then, she preceded to tell Dakota what happened. When she finished, the younger girl said, "We have to find them. Renee will only take so much, then she'll start fighting back. And it will be at the worst possible time."

Sara shook her head. "No, I'll find them. You stay here. Don't want you getting into trouble as well."

"I can't stay here. I have to find my friend."

"I'll find her. I'll find both of them."

"You don't seem worried."

"I am. I'm sick because of it. Because this is my fault." She looked at Dakota. "Go home. I'll find them."

Dakota searched Sara's face, then sighed and nodded. "I'll go."

They walked to the door, and she started down the street toward the apartment. It would be empty. Jason had left for home the night before. "I shouldn't have made her go," Dakota berated herself. "We should have gone to the library like I said we were doing. Then she'd still be here. But I had to play matchmaker. Now my best friend, the one who's like a sister to me, could be gone." People were giving her strange looks, but at the moment, she didn't really care.

Sara watched her walk away, then started toward the precinct, hoping to look through some old files to find the answer to this. When she was in front of the 11th Precinct building, she saw a man watching her from the shadows. With a growl, she made her way over to him. "Nottingham, must you always lurk? Can't you act normal at least once?"

"It would disappoint you if I did, Sara," came his reply.

"I actually am glad to see you. I need your help, Ian."

"To find your friends." He didn't state this as a question, and she picked up on that. It still struck her as odd, however.

"Yes. Can you help me?"

"I am sorry, Sara. I cannot."

"What? Why not?"

"You took away what I loved, Sara. I cannot give back what you love."

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. When she opened them again, he was gone. "Nottingham," she growled.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

As soon as the door closed, Gabriel tried to get to his feet. The larger of the two men shoved him against the wall with such force that it shook and the clock hung crooked. Gabriel burst into a coughing fit at the impact. The man threw him to the floor, and his head slammed off of the hard wood. After a moment, the room stopped spinning for him, and he started to get to his feet again.

The man sent his booted toes into the young man's gut, and he went sprawling across the floor. He tried to sit, and the other man joined in. The heel of his boot connected with Gabriel's ribs. Everyone in the room could hear one or two of them crack. Groaning, Gabriel continued his struggle to get to his feet. The two men watched him with grudging admiration. It didn't last long though.

One of them grabbed the hair at the back of his head, and while he lowered his captive's head, he brought his knee up to his face. His nose was crushed again, and his lip was a bloody pulp. He still glared at the two men. The one who now held him brought his knee up into Gabriel's stomach. With a grunt, he fell to the floor and stayed there this time. He saw it was pointless to fight back now. He would have to wait.

The men kicked him in the stomach, trying to get him to rise again, but it didn't work. He wouldn't have had enough strength even if he'd wanted to. One of the men stepped on the back of his hand, crushing the bones. He let out an involuntary wail of pain. His whole body throbbed from the beating he took, but still no darkness came as an escape from the pain. 

Finally satisfied with their work, the men left the room. They would be back later to return him to the pole. Maybe they would even have some more fun with him first.


	4. Help?

"Help?"

  
  


Dakota could feel someone's eyes on her back. She looked around but didn't see anyone suspicious. Her pace quickened but whoever was back there stayed with her. She slowed again, took a calming breath, and told herself, "Dakota Rose, you are being paranoid. No one is following you."

As soon as those words escaped her mouth, she felt a man's hand on her shoulder, and she jumped. Turning, she sighed with relief. "You scared me, Ian."

"I am sorry, Miss Rose."

"Please, you can call me Dakota. Both friends and enemies do."

Ian smiled at this. "I did not mean to startle you, Dakota. I had an interest in seeing you."

"About what?"

"Your friend."

"Do you know where she is?"

"No, I am sorry. I will help you find her."

"You should help Sara. She told me to go home. She'll find them."

"I cannot help her."

"Why not?" She thought he was starting to act weird.

"I have sworn not to. I will help you instead."

"Thank you, Nottingham. Please find her, she said as he turned to leave.

"I will," he replied, then added, "Dakota."

She watched him walk away, then turned and walked the rest of the way to the apartment. It was eerily silent. She had grown used to the sound of Renee typing at the computer, but it was silent now. Tossing her coat onto the couch, she looked around, then without even thinking about it, picked up the phone.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Renee's eyes were closed when she heard the door open then shut again. The two men rejoined their group and continued to ignore her pleas to know what was going on. She silently prayed that he would be all right, but she knew they had hurt him. It was something she could feel deep down and a knowledge that these men weren't likely to spend that much time in a room just talking to him, then leave him there. If we get out of this, she thought, I'll break down and let myself fall. And hopefully he'll catch me.

She managed to doze off for awhile, and when she was awake again, Gabriel was being dragged to the middle of the room. His face was pale white except for the cuts and bruises that covered it. There was a gash on his right cheek. Blood still flowed from his nose, mixing with the blood from the shredded ribbons that were his lips. His shirt was ripped, and Renee could see where the men's boots had come on contact with him. She could also see the mangled bones and skin of his left hand.

She felt like crying for the pain he had been put through. Instead of tears though, an anger rose in her. Forgetting she was chained to the pole, she started to stand. The cuffs cut into her wrists, and she sank back to the floor. She let out a deep breath then slid against the pole to keep the handcuffs from moving. Renee twisted her arm around until she got the one handcuff past her wrist. She made her hand as small as she could and slowly slid it free. Her other hand came out in a similar fashion. The men were huddled together talking and didn't see what she was doing.

She rubbed her wrists, chaffed from the handcuffs. skin was scraped from the back of her hands, and they were tender to the touch. After circulation was restored to her hands and arms, she pushed herself up from the floor and made her way over to the men. They didn't see her until she was only a few feet from them. The leader jumped to his feet in surprise. "How'd you get free?" He demanded. Then he saw her hands, and realization came to him. He sneered at her. "Think you're smart, do you? Owen, Travis," he said to two of his men. "Tie her up again. Securely this time."

Two men stepped forward to grab her, but she jumped out of their way. A dance began. They would step toward her, then she would stop to the side, just out of the closest one's reach. Finally, she was behind the leader. Before she could do anything though, he had spun around, grabbed her leg, and pulled her off her feet. Renee landed hard on her back, and her breath was knocked from her. She didn't have time to recover it before the two men grabbed her and chained her to the pole once more. This time they made sure the restraints were as tight around her wrists as they would go. One of the men kicked her in the stomach, causing her to double over in pain and cry out. She straightened and glared at him. The two men chuckled as they walked away.

"You okay?" The weak voice asked from behind her.

"I'm fine. Better than you."

A grin cracked his face, then he groaned softly in pain. "How'd you get free?" He asked once he had recovered. Renee grinned even though she knew he couldn't see her face. "Read too many westerns."

The leader's head jerked up and he yelled, "Will the two of you shut up?"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"This one of them?" Jake asked, and Sara moved to see his computer screen.

"No, Jake. Look at the descriptions again."

She rolled her eyes. They had been searching for an hour, and about every five minutes, he had asked that question. None of them were the five men they were looking for. The other two weren't having any better luck. After another half hour, they were about to give up. Then, Sara finally found what they were looking for.

"Found one of them," she announced. 

"Which one?" Danny inquired, looking up.

"The leader." She read his description from the screen. "Brian Ernan. Dark brown hair, blue eyes. 6'5", 200 pounds. Only kills for hire. Never been convicted. Always had the same group of four men with him. Owen Tady, Travis Ardan, Blake Adlar, and Cale Dahey." She read the next few sentences to herself, then looked up at her partners. "Find what you can on them. I've gotta see someone." She grabbed her jacket and was out the door.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Dakota dialed the number automatically. Her sister had always been the one she went to when something happened. The phone was answered on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Darvi."

"Dakota, what wrong?" The older sister had always been able to hear the difference in the younger's voice when something was bothering her.

"Something happened."

"What is it?" Darvi asked as she lowered herself into aa chair.

The story escaped in a rush of words. Starting with Renee meeting Gabriel, then moving on to her trying to get the two of them together. She ended with what Sara had told her. By the time she finished, tears were rolling down her cheeks. "What am I supposed to do, Darvi? It's my fault! Renee's probably dead, and it's my fault."

"Calm down, Dakota. I'm coming there."

Dakota swallowed and tried to take a deep breath, but broke down into tears again. Whey they finally subsided, she asked in a shaky voice, "Are you sure you can get away from the ranch?"

"Yes. I can get some time off to come there. Don't worry. I'll be there in a few days."

"Thanks, Darvi."

"No problem, little sis. Just stay out of trouble until I get there."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Pain burned through Gabriel's mid-section and along the ribs he figured were broken. It was hot in the room, and sweat ran down his face, stinging the cuts there. Renee heard him groan and managed to grab his hand and squeeze it. With her other hand, she tapped on the floor: four times, a pause, once, short pause, once more, pause, once, short pause, twice, pause, three times, pause, once pause, seven times.

It took Gabriel's mind a few seconds to process what she was doing. When it dawned on him, he tapped back: two taps, short pause, two, one tap, pause, three taps.

She smiled and asked in morse code, "You ok?"

"Yes."

They kept their replies to fragments and simple sentences.

"Sara will come," he tapped to her.

"When?"

"Soon."

Five minutes later they stopped tapping. Their captors hadn't heard the soft taps, but they didn't want to get caught. Since both knew morse code, they didn't need to worry about retribution for talking. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sara walked into the mansion, and Ian was instantly in front of her. "Sara, what can I help you with?"

She raised her eyebrows at him. He had just said this morning he wouldn't help her. "You know why I'm here, Nottingham. Brian Ernan, my suspect, was an acquaintance of your former employer. What can you tell me about him?"

"You know about my father. What can I tell you?"

She let out a frustrated sigh. "Not him. What do you know about Brian Ernan?"

"He is a cold-blooded killer. He is cruel. He has no conscience. If he does, he ignores it completely. He will stop at nothing to finish the job, to get his money."

"How does this help me in finding him?"She asked.

"I was not meaning to help you, Sara." He retreated into a side hallway, and she turned and walked out to her motorcycle.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The next morning Dakota stood up slowly and made her way across the room when she heard a knock on the door. Opening it, her face took on a shocked look, then brightened. "Darvi! How's you get here so soon?"

"I found a late night flight and took it. Wanted to get here as soon as I could."

That seemed to remind Dakota of the reason her sister had rushed to get here. Tears streamed down her face, and Darvi wrapped her up in her arms. She stood there, comforting her little sister until the crying stopped. "why don't we go sit down?"

Once they were seated on the couch, Dakota exclaimed, "This is all my fault!"

"No it's not, Dakota. Stop saying that. You didn't cause it to happen, and there was no way you could stop it."

"But it is my fault. I tricked her into going to see him. I told her we were going to the library, but I never planned on actually going there."

"You just thought you were doing what's best for your friend. Knowing Renee, you probably were. You couldn't have known what was going to happen."

"I was bullheaded. I should have laid off. She always said, 'It would happen if it was supposed to.' If I had listened to her, this wouldn't have happened."

"You were just being persistent. That's what everyone likes about you."

"Or hates." She showed her sister a weak smile. "I'm sorry, Darvi. I know you're trying to make me feel better, but until I see Renee again, it probably won't work. I shouldn't have even dragged you into this. You have your own problems with what's happening between you and Keith."

"The divorce." She stated it flatly.

"Yeah. You're having enough problems with that."

"Don't worry about it, Dakota. It's over. Paperwork went through a week ago. We're no longer married."

Before either of them could say any more, they heard the window by the fire escape start to slide open. Jumping up from the couch, they watched curiously, but ready to run once they knew the identity of the intruder. Darvi's face went pale when she saw who it was. "Ian?"

"Darvi." Looking at Dakota, he asked, "I am correct this time?"

"Yes, Ian. This really is Darvi."

He returned his gaze to the older Rose sister. After a minute, he tore his eyes away from her and looked again at Dakota. "I can find your friend."

"Then what are you doing here."

He looked wounded when he replied, "I wanted to tell you."

"I'm sorry, Ian."

His face cleared, and he looked up at Darvi. "I must be leaving. You will be here?"

He nodded at the two of them. Then he took a few steps backwards, turned sharply, and disappeared into the darkness. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

When Sara returned to the precinct, Jake and Danny were waiting with some information for her. "Brian Ernan's right and left hand men are Owen Tady and Travis Ardan. They are the only two he actually trusts, an he doesn't do anything unless they are there to back him up," Danny told her.

"One od the other men, Cale Dahey, owns a cabin. That's probably where they're holding them. We got descriptions of the four men as well."

Jake picked it up here. "Owen Tady: 5'8", 180 pounds. Blue eyes, red hair. Travis Ardan: 6'5", 211 pounds. Brown eyes, blond hair. Blake Adlar: 5'10", 175 pounds. Green eyes, brown hair. Cale Dahey: 5'9", 170 pounds. Brown eyes, brown hair."

"Let's go get them."

Neither of her partners knew if she meant the bad guys or her friends. They followed her anyway.


	5. Rescue

"Rescue"

  
  


Renee was still in the state between sleep and wakefulness when she heard the sound of footfalls. As they came closer, her eyes opened. Two men were approaching. They were the ones addressed by the leader as Owen and Travis: the two who had given Gabriel his beating. The leader was sitting in the corner of the room, loading the extra weapons. He knew a fight was coming soon. He had sent the other two men outside to keep watch. He decided to let his top two men have a little fun while they waited.

The shorter one carried a knife by his side. He squatted beside Gabriel, who was in a deep slumber. The taller one, a redhead, kept an eye on Renee. She glared up at him. He grinned at her as he grabbed at his crotch. She choked back a gag at the implication of what he wanted.

"Owen," he said to the other man, "maybe I should take her into the other room." He was still eyeing Renee lustfully. 

"Don't," Gabriel mumbled from behind broken lips. He had no idea what woke him, but was glad it had.

"What did you say, boy?" Travis demanded.

"Don't touch her," he said again, trying to make the words sound normal this time.

Travis sent his foot into Gabriel's side. "Why don't you learn to shut up, boy?"

Gabriel's face went white from pain, and he couldn't speak. When he finally regained his voice, he just repeated, "Don't touch her."

Owen grabbed Gabriel's hair, pulled his head back, and held the knife against his throat. A small drop of blood rolled down his neck. "I could easily," Owen threatened him, "slit your throat." He pulled the blade an inch away. "But, I think your hair's too long. Maybe I'll just give you a haircut instead." 

Gabriel tried to jerk away, but the knife reappeared and cut into his neck again. Blood welled to the surface and rolled down to the collar of his shirt. He grew weaker from the loss of blood and soon slumped against the pole.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Danny stopped the car a quarter mile from the cabin and turned off the engine. Sara turned to Jake in the back seat and said, "Stay here and call for back-up."

He started to protest but she stopped him. "You won't be much help with your arm. We'll be worrying about you instead of watching out for our suspects."

Jake nodded reluctantly, realizing what she said was true. Danny and Sara stepped out of the car and made their way to the cabin. When they were about fifteen yards from the cabin, they stepped into a clearing. The two men keeping watch spotted them and raised their guns.

Sara and Danny raised theirs and bullets began to fly. She crouched down and the Witchblade formed into a gauntlet. Danny was ahead of her and didn't see the change. Bullets glanced off of the metal glove. The eyes of the man on the right of the cabin widened in shock and fear. One bullet took him in the chest, punching through his right lung. He fell to the ground, and blood bubbled through his lips.

Sara turned to her left to see how Danny was doing just in time to see him fall to the ground with a bullet through his leg. She had a vision of him being shot in the chest while laying of the stage of a theater. Her finger tightened on the trigger, but the shot went wide. She didn't realize her feet were moving until she was a foot away from the man, and he was impaled by the blade. He collapsed and slid from the sword.

She started toward the door as two men stepped through it. one of them carried a knife with blood dripping from it. The Witchblade showed her the man holding it to Gabriel's neck. Her eyes snapped back to the man. With a scream of rage, she lunged forward and skewered him on the blade. A shot sounded from behind her, and the other man fell tot he ground with a scream of agony. The bullet had taken him through the groin. She turned her head and saw Danny grin at her before his head fell back to the ground. 

A bullet screamed past her head, reminding her there was still one man left to take care of. She turned her attention to him and raised her gun. Her first bullet took him through the chest, breaking off his Xiphoid process. The next one caught in his throat. He fell to the ground, choking on his own blood. He died a few minutes later, and Sara stepped over the body and walked into the cabin. 

She saw Gabriel and Renee chained to the pole and hurried over to them. The gauntlet had turned back to the bracelet when she killed the leader of the group. Sara took a clip out of her hair and used the narrow end of it to unlock both pairs of handcuffs. She helped Renee to her feet, then the younger girl turned to look at Gabriel. His hair was hanging in his face, and his eyes were closed. "He thought they broke a couple ribs," she said softly as tears finally slid down her cheeks.

Sara dug her phone out of her jacket pocket and called for an ambulance. She told them she had two wounded men. While Renee stayed with Gabriel, Sara went outside to check on Danny. His eyes were closed, but he opened them when she kneeled beside him. 

"You just won't let me catch up, will you?"

"On what, partner?"

"The saving of lives. Thought you would let me catch up, but you had to save mine before I could even do it for you."

"Shut up, partner," she told him with a worried grin on her face. "Ambulance should be here soon."

It arrived a few minutes later, and they carried two stretchers out. Two of the men got Danny on one and into the ambulance quickly, and the other two went in after Gabriel. Renee watched as they carefully lifted him, strapped him on, and carried him outside. She followed and waited beside Sara while the ambulance pulled away. "We should get you to the hospital, too," she told Renee when she saw her hands.

They were almost to the car when the back-up arrived. "You're too late," Sara told them when they walked past the car. They got into the car and pulled away, driving toward the hospital.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Ian stepped through the window again, and the two sisters looked up at him. "They are safe," he told them.

"Thank you, Ian," Dakota said. 

"I did not do it. Sara did." He turned to leave, then added, "They are at the hospital."

He walked over to the window before Darvi called, "Ian, wait."

He turned and looked at her.

"We need to talk. To catch up."

"When are you returning?"

She hesitated for a moment, then made a decision to the question she had been asking herself the last several hours. "I'm not. I'm gonna stay here."

He looked shocked for a moment, then his face broke into a grin. "I am glad. We will talk He smiled at her, then started to go out the window.

"Ian." Dakota stopped him. When he looked at her, she grinned and said, "If you're gonna be seeing my sister, use the door."

He looked between them, then stepped back into the room and walked to the door.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The doctor finished bandaging the backs of Renee's hands and gave her some ointment to put on them. She thanked him, then went to find someone who could tell her where Gabriel was. A nurse pointed the way to the room but told her,"He's asleep. The doctor put him on some pain medicine."

"Can I at least go in and sit with him?"

"I don't think there should be a problem with that. He'll probably be out for a few hours though."

Renee nodded and walked into the room. Like the nurse had said, he was sleeping. There was a bandage on his nose and one over the cut on his neck. His shirt had been removed,

and a bandage wrapped around his ribs.

Renee pulled a chair beside the bed and sank into it. She leaned forward and grabbed his hand. Not saying anything, she brought it up to her face and laid her cheek against it. Then she let it drop back to the bed.

She hadn't thought she was tired, but her eyes wouldn't stay open. Her chin dropped to her chest, then jerked up again when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head and saw Sara standing there. "Maybe I should take you home, Renee."

"No, I want to stay 'til he wakes up."

"Well, at least lay down. That other bed is empty."

Renee stood up and walked over to the bed. Within a minute, she was asleep. When she woke, Gabriel was watching her from the other bed. She pushed herself into a sitting position and asked, "How long have you been awake?"

"Not long."

She swung her feet to the floor and walked over to the bed. Smiling down at him, she pushed his hair out of his face. The doctor walked in just then and grinned at them. "How are you feeling, Mr. Bowman?"

"Oh, like I've been chained to a pole for a couple days, had two men work me over with their fists and boots, and one of hem holding a knife to my throat."

The doctor chuckled. "That's understandable, son." Then, he sobered up. "I'd like to keep you here for a week at least."

"The less time I'm here the better. Wanna get home right now."

"I understand, son. Even after you go home, you'll need to take it easy for a couple more weeks."

"I'll try."

"You'd better. Make sure he does," he told Renee. 

"I'll try," she repeated Gabriel's answer.

The doctor left them alone and Gabriel looked up at Renee. "Are you still scared?" He asked. 

"Yes." At his look of disappointment, she added, "But nothing could have me more scared than the thoughts of what those men were going to do to you."

"Cut my hair? That wouldn't be too terrible."

"Gabriel, I'm being serious! I was afraid they were going to kill you Twice."

"Can only kill a person once."

Her lip moved out in a pout at his teasing. He chuckled then apologized. "I'm sorry, Renee. I'll stop now. Will you let me take you to that dinner I asked you for when we first met?"

"Now?" She asked with a twinkle in her eyes.

"When I get out. Will you?"

"Yes."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Your friend's sister is gonna be living here, right?" Gabriel asked as they finished eating dinner. They had gone to see a movie earlier that night and were just about to come to the end of their fist date.

"Yeah. She's staying at Irons' mansion with Ian."

"Cool."

"Yeah. Dakota's happy about it."

Gabriel payed for the dinner, and they walked out of the restaurant. He walked Renee back to her apartment, then stood there in silence for several minutes. He wanted to kiss her but was afraid of how she'd react. She seemed to read his mind. Leaning closer, she brushed her lips across his cheek. 

They said good-bye, and she walked up to her apartment. When she reached it, Renee looked down from her window and waved. He returned the wave, then started home. His ribs still hurt, but now he almost forgot to remember them.

  
  


THE END


End file.
